We Can't loose the ability to feed our wild life.

[Archeryoutfitters]

Is it about being able to feed them or being able to bait them?

  ...is a good question. Whatup?

I guess it's how you look at it. I feed a lot of animals and kill very few I like to think I am making a difference here for them? especially on the really bad winters i know my areas the animals came out of it better than most and i continue to feed in till Feb. in some of the areas.
So yes i think it would be a BAD thing to loose it?

[jackelope]

How would your outfitting business suffer if you weren't allowed to feed deer? I have nothing against baiting deer, treestand hunting over bait, etc....I do wonder though, if you're so outspoken about it, if it's so you don't lose business because you can't bait.
Just something I was wondering about. How many do you kill plus all your clients and whoever else hunts your bait piles every year?

[Elkslayer]

Also...is ArcheryOutfitters a sponsor? Looking to promote something here? The pics look like advertising to me. Some sweet bucks for sure.

I guess everyone else on here that likes to share there trail cam pics needs to be a sponsor then huh? Give the guy a break, at least he shares some of his pics. I dont see anything different from his pictures than anyone others on here. 

[huntnnw]

yeah to that!

Hes referring to them taking the right away from "US" hunters to baiting/feeding deer... some dont do it..some do.. some are aginst it others dont care. We need to unite..just because it doesnt fit your way of hunting dont mean you should not or not unite on this issue..its a right we hunters could lose. Like stated above we lost hounds and bear baiting cause it didnt fit the way some hunters hunted. I bet everyone of us has a way of hunting that others dont see as "THEIR" way of hunting... we keep at this way we will eventually lose a hell of lot more

[pianoman9701]

I don't personally bait deer or elk, but that doesn't mean someone who does is any less a hunter. It's a legal activity in our state. We need to be more focused on busting people who break the laws and leave the rest of us hunters bathed in a bad light. We also need to continue educating the non-hunting public about the contributions we make to conservation and about proper wildlife management, encouraging our fellow hunters not to alienate us from those non-hunters through unethical practices and adversarial posturing. The debate of whether or not to bait should be civil with all parties aware that our ultimate goal is united - to keep our hunting heritage strong and to have that supported by the public in general through our actions, interactions, and ethics.

[Archeryoutfitters]

How would your outfitting business suffer if you weren't allowed to feed deer? I have nothing against baiting deer, treestand hunting over bait, etc....I do wonder though, if you're so outspoken about it, if it's so you don't lose business because you can't bait.
Just something I was wondering about. How many do you kill plus all your clients and whoever else hunts your bait piles every year?

Hello, it would suffer some, I am sure, a lot of people travel to Canada for this kind of of a experiences . But like the ability to keep there funds at home and not have to deal with the hassle at the borders.

It is a sensitive issue also because not only would it stop us the hunters from feeding the wild life it would stop all the non hunters over here from feeding the wild life that is a big reason our turkeys are doing so well and the deer made it through the 62 inches  of snow we got a few years ago in 17 days. The little feed lots all over the N.E. Wa. saved our heard form total devastation.

So yes i feel very strongly about it, I have a friend that owns the feed feed store in Kettle falls and 50% of her feed sold is for wild life now, and i am sure all the other feed store are very similar

I care a great deal about our wild life here and not just for the harvesting. I live with them and i spend a great deal of time out there with them.Thanks Brian

The bottom line for me is we need to do what is best for the wild life and leave our disagreements at home, i was a active houndogger and bear baits for many years before we lost it. 2 very important management tools that can never be replaced, and are in great demand for that reason now. We have no way to control our bear or our cats.

[Snapshot]

I think that feeding deer and baiting deer are two entirely different matters.

[buckfvr]

I agree, feeding and baiting are two very seperate acts.  So  Dale, any incling as to what we may be needing to defend this time ?? 

[sebek556]

the way i look at these issues is the same I look at any other hunting issue it may be for me or it may not. But each thing they take away is one thing closer to taking any something you or i do and believe is ethical.  remember each piece of hunting they take wether you like it or not is closer to the greenie's end goal, stop hunting period. Every time they take something and we just fight amongest each other just makes it easier to take the next thing. Stop the baiting no baiting debate and stand up and say NO YOUR NOT TAKING MORE AWAY FROM THE SPORT! Because the next thing they take might be something you hold dear.

[Snapshot]

I agree, feeding and baiting are two very seperate acts.  So  Dale, any incling as to what we may be needing to defend this time ?? 

 
 
Yeah, there are three things on the radar for this season-setting package:
 
1. Reinstate our early archery elk season to regular dates instead of having it start on the Tuesday after Labor Day. If this isn't changed our 2014 season will run Sept 2-14, and we are right back to where we were prior to 2003; weather is too hot and there are too many recreationalists (hikers, berry-pickers, hunters) in the forests at the the same time. And if the pattern that has emerged since the first modern rut tags were issued in 2009 were to continue (first they were for Sept 23-29 or so, this year some are for Sept 19-30), there will be modern elk permits as early as Sept 15 in 2014. Then it is just a swipe of a pen that pigeon-holes us right back to a Sept 1-14 elk season and for what? So that some permit applications can be sold. In 2009 we were told that we took too many mature bulls after our seasons were moved to Sept 8-21; but since the floating start date has been in place that harvest data has remained unchanged. But WDFW in 2009 mixed five point bulls into the equations, contrary to their own Game Managements Plan's definition of a mature bull (4-1/2 years old, generally six points or better), to come up with the conclusion that we took too many mature bulls. Anyone who knows elk knows a 2-1/2 year old raghorn can be a five point under good growth and genetic conditions. And on the east side, where permits carefully control the bull harvest, the alleged disproportionate advantage archers had over modern firearms when it came to taking mature bulls did not exist. Only on the west side where thick timber is a disadvantage to the rifleman are the close-range bowhunters better at taking bulls. If the WDFW took those raghorn five point bulls out of the equation then there would not be any advantage. So we go the shaft in 2009 just so that some modern elk rut permits could be sold to generate some money. We must ask that our season dates of Sept 8-21 be reinstated, and if there is one modern permit holder in the woods at the same time, so what? There is already some overlap and there hasn't been any problems.
 
2. In 2009 we lost the last week of our early deer seasons statewide because of the aforementioned modern elk permits; one permit in each of only a handful of prime GMU's. And it was said that statistics showed few bowhunters used that time. But bowhunters did go deer hunting after elk season, and I heard from a bunch of them after that opportunity was taken away. The deer total harvest numbers haven't changed much as a result; but the amount of recreational opportunity changed significantly. We need to get back our last week of the early deer season.  There are many GMU's where there aren't any elk permits in the last week of September so what harm would there be in letting us walk in the woods?
 
3. We have to have some compensation for any loss of late general mule deer opportunity in GMU 250 (Swakane) to give Chelan County residents a place to hunt that is close to their homes, and to prevent overcrowding in units that still have a late season. There are many units in Region 2 that have been closed to hunting for years and some of those should be opened if the Swakane gets taken away. It has been alleged that a powerful Region 2 biologist has proclaimed he/she wishes to eliminate late season bowhunting and make it permit only. As per the Game Management Plan there must be biological evidence to support taking away recreational hunting opportunity. If the goal of 25 bucks to 100 does isn't being achieved, then why not eliminate the antlerless harvest for everyone so more fawns get dropped? About one out of every two fawns will be a male and work toward the 25:100 ratio. I've read disparaging remarks about hunting the migrating animals as the snows drive them down from the higher elevations, but I've been on the high ridges of the Swakane in November and those animals are from helpless. I don't believe people making such accusations are familiar with the difficulty of getting within true bow range of a truly wild animal.

[BOWHUNTER45]

I am not much on baiting deer but whatever floats a guys boat I will respect that .. Hunting to me is all about me heading out and finding what I am looking for ... its all about out smarting animals and being the ultimate predator.. Maybe to some baiting fits this criteria but its not for me ....feeding deer or elk or any type wildlife to get pictures is perfectly o.k with me 

[Snapshot]

the way i look at these issues is the same I look at any other hunting issue it may be for me or it may not. But each thing they take away is one thing closer to taking any something you or i do and believe is ethical.  remember each piece of hunting they take wether you like it or not is closer to the greenie's end goal, stop hunting period. Every time they take something and we just fight amongest each other just makes it easier to take the next thing. Stop the baiting no baiting debate and stand up and say NO YOUR NOT TAKING MORE AWAY FROM THE SPORT! Because the next thing they take might be something you hold dear.

I respectfully suggest you get your fanatic-facts straight... "Greenies" aren't out to end hunting. That is the "bunny-huggers" goal. The "greenies" want to protect wild places from being ruined by carelessness. Guess what? As an outdoorsman so do I! Because wild animals won't survive without wild places and without wild animals my future grandkids won't know hunting. Because us and them have more in common than some of us care to admit those "greenies" could well end up being the hunters' best friends in the long run. Unless we drive them away with ugly practices.
 
To change the subject (and further jack the thread), want to do something to protect your privilege to hunt? Do some fact checking about an effort to expand the North Cascades National Park boundaries. And then write an opposition letter to each of your congresswomen to ask them to please not support any congressional action that would change the boundaries. National Parks designation would end hunting on hundreds of thousands of acres that we can currently hunt on. An alternative might be wilderness designation which is at least foot-hunter and horseback-hunter friendly and at the same time offers some protections that "greenies" appreciate, too.

[huntnnw]

I am an avid archer,but I could careless for the last week of archery deer IMHO..I dont like that they have taken days away and for nothing. The week I want back and is a big deal is the late archery whitetail season we lost that was a prime date for us..now we are chasing the tail end of the rut and post rut. The early dates to me are not as critical as the bucks are very hard to hunt in late sept and alot of archers dont chase them by then..most serious archers put in the time that first week.

[buck man]

I am an avid archer,but I could careless for the last week of archery deer IMHO..I dont like that they have taken days away and for nothing. The week I want back and is a big deal is the late archery whitetail season we lost that was a prime date for us..now we are chasing the tail end of the rut and post rut. The early dates to me are not as critical as the bucks are very hard to hunt in late sept and alot of archers dont chase them by then..most serious archers put in the time that first week.

[Elkaholic daWg]

 When you can find a noticeable difference between Bunny huggers and greenies I'd like to see it.
 When your greenie comrade doesn't need you anymore to help close off access to our "wild" places ,they will toss you aside and jump in bed with  the bunny(wolf)hugger.


 Case in point.......
http://hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php/topic,81383.0.html

 Or
http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=385127436760&topic=14016&post=102406#topic_top